Hockey's Avalanche-Red Wings rivalry is back, and it's wonderful

The blood feud is back. The bile again flows between the Avalanche and Red Wings. Itís ugly. Itís edgy. Itís wickedly beautiful.

Detroit beat Colorado 4-2 on Thursday night. But it was a brawl. While the Avs lost for the first time in seven games, the chant of Red Wings (stink!) again shook the walls of the arena in all of its profane glory.

Of course, it takes two to tango. The blood feud between the Avs and Wings matters again, but only because Colorado is fighting its way back as a worthy heavyweight contender in the NHL.

Letís start with the violence. Why? Because in a sport of uncommon speed, beauty and big hits, nothing can heat up a blood feud like a cheap shot.

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Avalanche winger Cody McLeod delivered the blow. He smashed Detroit defenseman Niklas Kronwall into the boards with the opening period barely two minutes old.

McLeod left with a boarding penalty and a game misconduct.

Kronwall left the ice on a stretcher.

While there appeared to be no malice in McLeodís hit, it was a cheap shot.

As Kronwall chased the puck into his own end, he had at least a stride and a half on McLeod as the puck bounced off the boards.

Kronwall dropped his head to collect the puck. Bad move. Dangerous move. A Hockey 101 textbook example of self-preservation failure.

McLeod, heading straight at the No. 55 on Kronwallís back, dropped a hip and crashed into the Detroit defenseman. Bang-bang play? Sure. But a dirty hit? Absolutely.

When you can see a manís numbers and crunch him into the boards, the onus is on the man who instigated the collision, not the player with his head down.

On the heels of a firestorm started throughout the NHL by a vicious hit from Maxim Lapierre of St. Louis on San Joseís Dan Boyle, the Department of Player Safety will need to take a long, hard look at McLeodís action.

Did McLeod intend serious harm to Kronwall? Only a blind loyalist partial to the Wings would suggest such foolishness. But did McLeod tee up Kronwall? Yes. Only an Avalanche homer would suggest the hit was unavoidable.

Kronwall was treated in the Detroit dressing room for a concussion and cuts to the ear. But he was moving extremities, a good sign.

Was it a bad hit?

ďIt looked bad,Ē said Detroit center Johan Franzen, a veteran who has seen the intensity of this series. ďI donít know how much time (McLeod) had to actually slow down. But heís got to find a way to lower his point of impact. Heís got to find a way to not hit him in the head.Ē

Franzen added that NHL official Brendan Shanahan, the leagueís director of player safety, will have to take a close look at the hit.

Was it a cheap shot? Avalanche coach Patrick Roy pleaded ignorance, as not to incriminate McLeod for his hit.

ďTo be honest with you, I did not look at it, because I did not want to look at it,Ē Roy said. ďFrom the bench, I thought Kronwall turned his back at the last minute. Does that make it a dirty hit? I guess Shanahan is going to have to make a decision.Ē

Roy added: Anybody who knows the game will know it was hard for McLeod to stop.

Accidents happen. But, in rear-end collisions, everybody knows which party the insurance company finds at fault.

McLeod is a likable fellow. He has a good heart, which is valued by the boys in the room. But he can be a knucklehead on the ice. And he deserves a suspension.